US President Joe Biden, from Northern Ireland, whom he visited on Wednesday as a “friend”, called on the local political forces to overcome their divisions and end the institutional paralysis afflicting the British province, a quarter of a century after the signing of the peace agreements.
And Biden, who rarely misses an opportunity without mentioning his Irish origins on his mother’s side, began a speech he delivered at the University of Belfast by recalling his British roots on his father’s side, in a rare gesture on his part.
The US President visited Northern Ireland to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the signing of the peace agreements on April 10, 1998. However, this commemoration coincides with a bitter political reality that the British province is going through.
The actual paralysis prevails in the local institutions that were established a quarter of a century ago, in which power is shared by the pro-London unionists, the majority of whom are Protestants, and the republicans calling for secession from Britain, joining the Republic of Northern Ireland, and the majority of them are Catholics.
“lesson”
In his speech, Biden reminded that three decades ago, one could not have imagined that the Belfast University building, built entirely of glass and steel, would be like this in a city whose limbs were cut with barbed wire, and rocked by explosions and bloody clashes.
This stage was called “The Troubles”, and 3,500 people were killed. And the US President added in his speech that “the lesson of the Good Friday agreements is that when things seem very fragile (…) there is an urgent need for hope and effort.”
Biden noted the economic potential of Northern Ireland, a province that suffers from financial difficulties and in which Washington has pledged to invest, and said: “I hope that parliament and the (local) government will soon be re-established,” stressing at the same time that the final decision in this regard rests with local political leaders.
Before delivering his speech, the US President met with the leaders of the five main parties in the British province, including the “Democratic Unionist Party”, which does not hide its caution against the Catholic Biden.
Political paralysis
For more than a year, this party has refused to participate in the joint institutions, which are self-governing in Northern Ireland and are among the gains of the peace agreement. The party refuses to participate in these institutions because it objects to the very sensitive land border situation with the Republic of Ireland, after the United Kingdom leaves the European Union. However, the Unionist Party coldly received Biden’s invitation to resolve the political crisis in the province.
Although the party leader, Jeffrey Donaldson, did not go as far as describing the US president as “anti-British”, as one of his deputies did, he merely said that resolving the crisis requires additional legal amendments that strengthen Northern Ireland’s status within the United Kingdom.
During his very short visit to the British province, Biden met briefly with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who confirmed that relations between the two countries are “very good.”
However, Biden’s lightning visit and the very short meeting he held with Sunak gave London the impression that the US president was performing the required minimum, especially compared to his visit to neighboring Ireland, where he will spend two and a half days.
The US president left the British province for Ireland, a member state of the European Union. The US President arrived in Dublin on a visit that includes a personal and family part.
migration
And Biden, who had previously visited Ireland when he was former Vice President Barack Obama, praises his Irish origins after his ancestors immigrated to the United States in the nineteenth century in search of a better life.
The White House was keen to detail the president’s family tree for reporters, and to provide a series of funny details about his ancestors. The US President seeks to turn the visit into a political platform, as he intends to run for elections in 2024.
Biden wants to prove to the frustrated middle class that the “American dream” is still possible, emphasizing that he comes from a working family of modest means. Biden plans to visit two Irish towns that genealogy experts say his ancestors came from: Louth and Mayo.
And in the small town of Ballina, located in the northwest, American flags have been spread around a mural decorating a local bar, since Biden won the presidential elections in the United States. Between the two stops, the US President will visit Dublin, which will include bilateral meetings and a speech to parliamentarians.